Penn Township takes over local recreation as commission dissolves

After nearly a quarter-century in operation, the Penn-Trafford Area Recreation Commission will close its doors.

The nonprofit’s five governing bodies — Penn Township, Penn Borough, Penn-Trafford School District, Manor and Trafford — voted in recent weeks to dissolve the organization, with Penn Township commissioners casting the final approval last week.

But recreation in the four-municipality community is not coming to an end, said Penn Township secretary/manager Mary Perez.

Penn Township’s new recreation director, Michael Tassone, hired in April, is working to make sure the nonprofit’s programs continue without a hitch.

“I think some people may have thought that because (the nonprofit) was dissolving that recreation in the township or the school district was going away, and it’s not,” Perez said. “It’s just going to be another entity here providing it.

“(Tassone) wants, I know, people to know that he’s excited to continue to work in the community and offer programming and events to everybody. Recreation’s definitely not going away. In fact, we hope to make it bigger and better.”

Tassone declined an interview with TribLive and deferred to Perez for comment.

New director

The township has added a recreation tab to its website and plans to launch a social media page to advertise its events, Perez said. Tassone is working with the nonprofit’s partners, including the school district and Penn Township Ambulance, to ensure programs can continue to be held in their spaces, she said.

Tassone has lived in Penn Township and worked as an assistant for PTARC for about two years, Perez said. He came to the community with about 15 years’ experience as a recreation director in Florida, said the nonprofit’s executive director, Linda Bires.

“He was a great fit,” Bires said. “He really has a lot of energy, a lot of great ideas. He understands recreation, and he’s learning the community.”

Tassone has taken over the township’s summer food truck and music events, held each Friday from May to August since 2023. He is also considering a movie night at the township’s Municipal Park and a Halloween-themed event in October, Perez said.

“He’s got a lot of good ideas, and I’m sure that he will offer different things,” she said.

Tassone’s creativity is slightly limited this year by budget constraints, Perez said, as township staff did not anticipate taking over recreation duties when drafting the 2025-26 budget.

Nonprofit mission

The transition to township recreation management is bittersweet for Bires, who has been involved with the nonprofit since its creation. Bires worked as a full-time assistant to then-Executive Director Cheryl Kemerer from 2001 to 2010, taking a step back to pursue another opportunity until 2013.

Bires has served as executive director since 2014.

“I believed in it, to be honest with you,” said Bires, of Penn Township. “My whole idea was I wanted it to be a test drive for families. I had three kids in three years, so it was ridiculously expensive to try to have one kid in karate and one kid in football and one kid in softball.

“I wanted to be able to provide a six-week or eight-week trial run before people went out and paid all kinds of money for dance costumes or registration fees or equipment — find out if their kid actually liked it.”

The nonprofit was funded annually by each of its five governing bodies, though the original intent was to support the organization until it could function solely with the revenue from its programs, Bires said.

“But with the cost rising, insurance was going up — everything’s going up,” Bires said. “It’s just become a little more difficult to fund the department through the classes and programs, and keep the prices reasonable enough for everybody to be able to participate.”

The nonprofit’s senior programs and annual dad and daughter dance are some of Bires’ favorite memories from her career.

“I hope I stay active,” she said. “I’ll probably come and participate in Penn Township recreation programs, because I’m not one to sit at home and do nothing. I am excited.”